4 Anglers 3 Boats 1 Blue Marlin

7.00am departure of the "CHALLENGER 5" with Walter on board, as well as "CHALLENGER 6" with Klaus and me.

9:00am First seagulls show us the way to a bonito swarm. Six boats try to get the coveted live bait.

10:00am We are lucky and get two, which we immediately on our 80lbs Marlingerät mount.

10:30am A Wahoo cut both Bonitos. We are back on Jigs again.

11:20am Again the gulls show us the way. 10 minutes later we are in a huge swarm of bonitos. Three are hooked, but only two on board and immediately again mounted on the two 80lbs rods.

2:35pm We are very far out. Mauritius with our mountain "Le Morne" can only be seen as a tiny spot on the horizon. Walter has already returned to the port. He expects friends who want to visit him.

0:40pm The outrigger hits the lineclip. "STRIKE, STRIKE". Klaus jumps into the combat chair. Our skipper Jean-Marie gives on his command full throttle with both engines. The Blue Marlin jumps about 150 meters behind the boat from the water. We estimate it to be about 500 lbs. The hook sits. After Jean-Marie has throttled the engines again the drill begins. Only now do we notice that the combat chair is broken. The base plate directly under the seat has broken through at the rear attachment. The seat is located forward in an uncomfortable oblique position. We quickly realize that it is not a favorable seat for the drill of a large marlin. To all misfortune Jean-Marie tells us that the right engine has failed. My job is to turn the seat and the angler towards Marlin. With only one engine it is very difficult to keep the fish behind the boat.

2:40pm Klaus is already sitting in the chair for 2 hours. The comic sitting position on the chair makes it hard for him. He has no leverage at all in the rod, since he can lift it upwards only 50 cm. Several times he had drilled the Marlin up to 20 meters on the boat. This seems to be a magic limit for him. Each time he pulls 100 meters from the 80lbs Penn International. 10 minutes later the whole thing is repeated again. Klaus advises with his experienced skipper Jean-Marie. A Marlin of this magnitude (we were still at 500 lbs) should actually be drilled after 1 hour. Something was wrong with this but not.

3:00pm Klaus forces dwindle, because of its uncomfortable seat position faster than usual. He asks me to take his place. Two minutes later, I sit in the broken combat chair and feel the still immense power of the fish. I'm also no different from Klaus. Each time I have pumped the Marlin up to the Doppelleine, the animal transverses to the current and draws without problems 100 to 150 meters from the completely closed brake of the roll. Meanwhile, we have asked for radio assistance. A friend of Klaus is with us on his speedboat.

4:00pm The sea becomes more restless and maneuvering more difficult. For an hour I am already sitting in the chair, and the "game" is repeated over and over again. At some point he must get tired. The speedboat is there. The rod is secured with a thick rope and we are ready to translate. Translate ?! By the sea? Nothing for me. The boat comes on the starboard side, and they both crash violently. In the third attempt it works then nevertheless. Klaus and assistant Coutuc jump over. Done! We pass the rod, while Klaus is already sitting in the combat chair.

4:15pm Walter has now followed the events at sea by radio. Together with Cyril de Robillard (manager of the Beachcomber Fishing Club) he is on the road to the place of action on board the "CHALLENGER 5". Skipper Jean-Marie and I chug slowly with only one engine towards Mauritius. We meet on the way, and Walter decides to go to Klaus anyway.

5:00pm We received the message that the rod holder at the combat chair was broken off. Klaus only fished the fish with the harness. Fortunately Walter has now arrived at the "CHALLENGER 5". This time, however, only the rod changes the boat. Klaus is ending with his powers and does not want to translate anymore.

5:40pm Walter is now the third angler who tries to persuade the Marlin to give up. After forty minutes, however, his back makes a dash for him. Cyril is the fourth angler in the combat chair. After another 20 minutes, the Marlin finally gives up his resistance and can be landed.

6:30pm I follow the rest of our Marlin adventure by radio in the harbor. Meanwhile Klaus is back with the speedboat. He can hardly stand straight.

7:00pm In the meantime it has turned dark. The "CHALLENGER 5" has no navigation device on board. The entrance to the lagoon is only 20 meters wide. We decide to light the passage with large lamps from a boat.

8:00pm Skipper Harold with the "CHALLENGER 5" appears before the entrance. A misunderstanding in the communication happens exactly what we wanted to prevent. The boat is resting on the reef. After numerous attempts we finally managed to get the "CHALLENGER 5" free again, and dragged to the port. Finally, the Marlin can be unloaded and we see why he kept us in our breath for 6 hours. At the bite the Marlin had hit the hook out of the mouth. The latter sat firmly behind the eye in the firm flesh.